


Father And Daughter

by a_crested_eagle



Category: League of Legends
Genre: Alternate Universe, Animals, Baby, Cabin, Family, Family Fluff, Father-Daughter Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Goats, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slice of Life, baby Akali, forest, mountain
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-23
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:46:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22865023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_crested_eagle/pseuds/a_crested_eagle
Summary: Shen spends his adult life living alone in the forest. A cold, dark night, he finds a baby at his doorstep.And his life changes.
Relationships: Akali & Shen (League of Legends)
Comments: 44
Kudos: 92





	1. The Baby at the Door

**Author's Note:**

> UPDATES ARE INCONSISTENT.   
> This is my comfort fic, I'm not gonna stress about it.

It was a cold, dark night at the mountain. The wind was swirling through the pine trees, making the small residents of the forest shiver in their hiding holes. Grey clouds were looming in the sky, blocking the moonlight, leaving the mountain in darkness.   
A young, light brown mouse was running behind its mother through the dark. Jumping over exposed roots, running over the pine needles and around rocks, the two mice were running for their lives. Squeaking, the mother turned to check for her baby. Her daughter picked up her pace, her vibrissae now touching her mother’s tail.

Not far behind them, bright, hungry eyes followed. The fox was gaining ground, like she did the last three nights that had cost the little mice family its three other kids. This time, the mother was determined to keep her last kid alive.   
She finally caught the smell she was looking for. A bigger, smarter and more ruthless predator. One that even the big bad fox feared. She let her baby catch up to her and directed her to follow the smell. And so they kept running side by side, to escape the bright white teeth.

Soon, a warm red light appeared through the branches ahead. Behind the mice, the fox picked up her pace, scared of the light, but desperate to eat. They could feel the warmth of her breath on their tails. The fox’s teeth snapped, barely missing the young one.

The sound of her baby screeching in terror, the sight of the desperate look in her tiny fluffy face, made her motherly nature kick in full force. Overcoming her own self-preservation instincts, the mother turned and jumped at the fox, front feet extended in an attempt to appear bigger, small sharp teeth ready to bite.

* * *

Inside the wooden sack, Shen took a bite and sighed with pleasure. He had spent all his day checking his traps in the mountain, and only now was able to eat a proper meal. The air in his home was warm and filled with the pleasant smell of roasted rabbit.   
He was sitting on his wooden chair by the fireplace, enjoying the warmth when he heard the fox’s cry. Then, a rodent squeaking and more fox wailing. The sounds were close. Too close. No animals came this close to his home, not until late spring. Curious, he put his wooden plate down and walked to the door.

The cold wind sucked the warmth off his face as he opened the door and he winched at the sudden change in temperature. Still, his trained eyes caught a glimpse of a fluffy red tail run away. The squeaking had stopped and the only sounds were coming from the tree branches swinging in the wind. Shen stood at his doorstep, examining the area around his home.   
The air smelled of the coming rain, moist and heavy. The fences of his closest garden were intact, the fence that came around his home was standing without any visible damage, the cut tree trunk that he’d build his gate on was intact, but... The small gate was open, moving slightly with the wind. No fox could open the gate and bigger animals would have jumped over or simply brake it. Something else was near.  
Shen raised his right hand to his chest, palm facing to the left, his index and middle finger forming the sign he needed to summon his blade. Ready for anything, he stepped forward.

And he stumbled at the small bundle at his feet. He did a roll and turned towards it, with a fat and short blade flickering blue at his hand. A baby mouse jumped from the bundle and run into the house. So that was the fox’s prey. Smart move from the little rodent, he would admit later. For now, his worry was the bundle of fur at his doorstep. He moved closer, his sword-hand ready to defend or strike.

“Waa...”

Shen froze in place.

“Waaaa, waaaah!”

A baby. A human baby. At his doorstep. In a forest in the middle of nowhere.

“WAAAAAAA!” The baby began crying with as much strength as its little lungs could manage.

Shen looked around, feeling himself panicking.

“ANYONE HERE?” he yelled, even though he knew it was in vain. The baby was left here. And whoever left it wasn’t coming back. He let his sword vanish with a final flicker.   
Reluctantly, he picked up the bundle and opened it slightly. The crying stopped almost immediately.

Small brown eyes looked at his own white ones. Black short hair barely covered the baby’s head. Its small nose was red at the edge from the cold. The tiny mouth that was screaming seconds ago, was now closed, lips sucked in.  
The baby tilted its head to the right, trying to get a better look at the man that was holding it. She saw white eyes with no irises. Messy brown hair tied back. A scar began at his chin and climbed through his mouth and to the side of his long nose.

Then, she smiled. A big, wide smile, accompanied by two tiny hands that rose towards Shen’s face, trying to catch the white light of his eyes.

“A-aa.”

Despite his surprise, he laughed.

“You can’t catch them, little one.”

She stopped and stared at him for a second. Then began trying to grab the lights again. Shen laughed softly again and stepped into his home, rocking her gently.

“Hungry? You’re lucky that Nanny had a kid during winter. Otherwise, I have no idea what I would feed you.” he said as he closed the door, keeping away the cold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nanny is a goat. There're cool goats in this fic.


	2. Baby Bottle

Shen leaned on the door and took a deep breath. The baby at his hand punched his chest with a small weak hand but he didn’t notice. He was thinking about how to feed her the goat milk. Another punch. He looked around at the familiar house helplessly, not really knowing what he was looking for. The baby finally managed to catch his attention by kicking the air below her fur blanket. He turned to look at her.

“You’re lively.”

“Prrfff...” she made spit bubbles at her mouth and laughed. She had gained the attention of the white-eyed giant.

He used his thumb to wipe the spit off her mouth, smiling. As he pulled his hand away, she tried to bite it. When that failed, she raised her small hands to catch his. Her tiny hands barely closed over his pinky. She laughed. Hesitantly and almost involuntary, he did too.  
Letting her keep his hand, he pushed his chair away from the fireplace with his leg. It silently slid on the wool rugs underneath. There, in front of the warmth of the fire, he placed the baby down and removed its fur blanket. His thinking was to find a clue from where she came from in the fur, but that was quickly forgotten.   
The moment the baby was freed of its covers, she began crawling as fast as she could, heading to the corner left of the fireplace. He grabbed her and put her next to him but the moment he turned to look at the fur again, she bolted away. That corner was very appealing apparently. This time he put her in front of him and crossed his legs around her, trapping her. So he thought. Not a second later, she had escaped. He reached behind her and caught her leg.

“BAAAA!” she protested.

“Sit still, you.” 

She did not.

“AAAAAAUUA!!” She kicked his hand and tried to pull him with her.

“Spirits, Hop is calmer than this,” he mumbled, referring to the baby goat that should be sleeping a few doors away.

The baby was properly pissed now. She stopped fighting and turned to look at him.

“A! ABABAAA! BA!! D-DA!” she complained. “DAAAA!” She punched his hand. “DABAAaa _-pause for breath-_ aaAAAAA!!”

“Okay then,” Shen said and tied her back into the fur bundle she came with.

“AAAAAUUU-” she began complaining again, but Shen put his hand over her mouth. Exploiting the opportunity, she bit his pinky. She didn’t have teeth yet, so she failed to do the damage she wanted.   
Frowning, she began sucking the finger, furious that she was bested so easily. She became angrier when she realized that the finger didn’t provide her with milk, no matter how hard she tried. She pushed it away and, if it was even possible, frowned even harder at the man.  
So now, Shen was sitting in front of his fireplace with a baby in his lap that was giving him the stinky eye. Not how he thought his night would go.

He snickered and rose to his feet, balancing the baby on his right arm.

“Let’s see if Nanny has any milk left.”

Shen grabbed a burning piece of wood, walked to the middle of the room and opened a door covered in grey wool. It opened to a small hallway with two doors. The door on the right would open to Shen’s bedroom, while the one ahead led to a general use long-room. He cut through it to another door, then another hallway, and finally reached the dark barn where Nanny and Hop were sleeping.  
Shen had installed clay pipes to distribute some of the fireplace heat the other rooms in the house. One of those pipes led here, and the two goats were sleeping next to the pipe opening at the far right corner, enjoying the warmth.  
He placed the torch in a base in the wall. He then made sure that the baby was securely tied up in its blanket, tucked his shirt inside his pants and shoved the bundle of anger inside his shirt through the neck.   
With the baby secured and his hands free, he walked to the goats.

Hop gave him a curious look and went back to sleep, too tired to bother with why the human had put another smaller human inside his chest.  
Nanny gave her weird human a curious look. Then she saw him picking up the milk bucket and snorted disappointingly.

“I know, it’s late, you want to sleep, I know,” Shen said apologetically. “But look!” he lifted the baby a bit higher out of its makeshift pouch, “It’s a baby! Someone left a baby! She has to eat.”

Nanny moved her head high and to the left, refusing.

“Well, _I_ can’t feed her!” Shen stopped a few steps away and squatted. “Come on Nan.”

Nanny kept looking to the ceiling. Shen sighed.

“Okay, I get it.”

He walked to the other side of the barn and opened the door that led to the goats’ food storage. Above the sacks of hay, inside two vases, small sugar cubes were waiting for the special occasions that they were needed. Such as it was now. He grabbed one and walked out.  
Shen returned to his position close to the goat family and presented a sugar cube to Nanny. She gave him a side glance and kept looking at the ceiling.

“You... Fine.” He pulled another cube of the vase. “Here. Two cubes.”

She turned to look at him properly now, but still refused to move.

“I’ll sell you to the farmer down the village you smart-ass, two cubes are more than enough. Come on.” Shen fake-threatened her, hiding his smile.

She lowered her head slightly but refused to move otherwise, looking at him defiantly with golden eyes.

“Did I raise a goat or a mule? Fine! Three cubes, final offer.” he showed her another sugar cube.

Only then Nanny approached him and let him milk her. She didn’t have too much, Hop had eaten a few hours ago, but it was enough to fill about one-third of the small bucket. Two or three meals for the baby, Shen guessed, wrongly.  
Nanny was occupied with munching the sugar as Shen milked her but now she took interest to the mini human inside his shirt. After a full minute of sniffing and examining the baby, she decided that the baby was, in fact, okay to stay in the house. She gave it a soft nose bump (the baby laughed and tried to catch Nanny’s nose, a task she failed to accomplish as her hands were firmly tucked inside her blanket) and moved back to her own kid.

Milk bucket in hand, baby in its pouch, Shen walked back to the first long-room, where his kitchen was located to the wall opposite of the fireplace. There, he poured the milk in his wooden water bottle. He took a wooden plate and made a small hole in the middle with a knife. A short trip to the other long-room equipped him with a small saw that he used to cut the plate in the shape of a lid for his bottle.  
The baby must have figured out that she was about to be fed because she was getting more and more restless, as Shen noticed when he got hit by an uppercut from a recently escaped hand.  
He trapped it back into the blanket, with its owner, and got clean cloth from a drawer. He put the new bottle lid on his bottle, followed by the cloth. His creation was completed with a string that he used to tie the cloth in place.  
He turned the baby bottle upside down to see how fast the milk would come out. A white droplet formed and fell, then another. It was slow enough. He pulled the cloth a bit lower to form something for the baby to suck and went to sit back in front of the fireplace.

There, the baby ate to its heart content. When she finished, she gave Shen a big burp and a bigger smile.   
In the moment it took Shen to place the almost empty bottle on his side, the baby had fallen asleep. Not wanting to wake her, he threw a big log in the fire and relaxed there. 

Soon, man and baby, doe and kid, all were asleep in the warm house in the woods.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Visual guide link](https://acrestedeagle.tumblr.com/post/611544827258175488/visual-aid-for-chapter-2-of-this-fic-father) for the house layout.


	3. Untitled

The sun was climbing in the sky, slowly warming the earth with its golden rays. The frost in the mountain’s peaks endured for a few hours, as it was just early spring and the sun was still weak. When the water-filled clouds remained low, denying it shelter, it began to cry, silently at first. Then, as the sun climbed higher it began to wail, as ice chunks fell from the peaks. Cold, clear water formed a raging river, rushing down the mountain.  
At the highest forest of the mountain range, at the peak of the tallest tree, a hawk was basking in the sun. Above it, the sky was the cool blue of the morning. A meter below it, a sea of white clouds was covering everything but the lone treetop the hawk was resting on.

Forty meters below and then ten to the south a door opened and Shen got out from the barn, baby in his shirt and goats at his heels.  
A short fence was around the house, build with the intention of keeping the goats in. It was build before Shen got Nanny and, as if to mock his past ignorance, Hop’s morning ritual involved jumping three times over it. Nanny, the graceful goat of the family, waited until Shen opened the gate, gave a small bite on his shirt and moved out to the forest.

“Don’t go too far. The baby might need to eat again.” Shen called after her.

Nanny moved her head in a circle wearingly and bleated for Hop to come along. Which he did, eventually.   
First, he jumped over the fence and tried to headbutt Shen’s leg. Exited as he was, he missed his step and rolled over, hitting the open fence gate. Without missing a beat, Hop got up, run into the barn, then out and attempted his longest jump ever, miscalculated and tripped on the fence, rolled a bit on the dirt, did a jump straight up reaching almost Shen’s chest, bleated at his own leg disapprovingly and only then run to his mother.  
She let him run past and gave the most desperate look a goat could manage to Shen. His laughter was held back only by the thought that the baby sleeping in his shirt might be equally energetic.

“Don’t give me that look,” he said to Nanny. “You’re the one that went and mated with a wild buck.”

She snorted at his remark and walked behind her son, head held higher than usual.

* * *

Shen looked down at his shirt. The baby shifted in her sleep. At first, he found the movement cute, then he felt an unwanted warmth inside his shirt.

“Not again...” he mumbled and pulled the baby out.

She woke up and looked at him curiously.

“You need diapers.” he pointed a finger at her.

“Da?”

“Diapers. This is the fourth time in half a day.” Caring her on his side, he followed the goats’ path. Soon, he reached the stream where the goats had just finished drinking from. He placed the baby down, somewhat away from the water, and took off the clothes she had dirtied.   
It had been many years since he had done any real training but the life in the mountain kept him fit, his muscles remaining well defined. Two big scars formed an X on his back and a smaller, almost like an upside wave, was between his ribs.  
He quickly washed himself and then unwrapped the baby off her blanket. She giggled as he carried her to the stream. Shen used the clean parts of his shirt to wipe her clean, then, with her on his shoulders, run to the house to cover her in clean blankets. She laughed as he run and ate his hair as he picked a blanket for her.  
So far, her favourite thing to chase was his eyes. So he laid down and rolled away every time she got close. She crawled behind him, yelling for the white lights to come back.   
It took quite some time to tire her. When she did, she sat down and lifted her tiny arms towards him, asking for a hug. He picked her up and covered her in clean grey cloth. Keeping her in his arms he sat on the bed and began rocking her gently until she fell asleep. When she did, he laid her on top of the cloth he used as a pillow.  
After another look to make sure she was sleeping, Shen picked up the white fur blanket he had picked for her and cut it into two pieces. After putting one aside, he cut the other one more time, this time matching the baby’s size. Gently, he wrapped it around her and, after finding a shirt for himself, picked her up again.

“You’ll also need a pouch,” he told the sleeping baby.

She blew air off her nose and rubbed her head to his chest, trying to get comfortable.

* * *

Three hours later, the baby was sleeping again, it’s butt covered by multiple pieces of cloth, on top of Shen’s bed. Shen himself was sitting at the edge of the bed, sewing two shirts together to make a temporary pouch.  
Pieces of ripped clothing were all over the floor, the final remains of old clothes he used to make her new diapers. His successful attempts were piled up at the legs of the bed, to a total of five underwear.

He finished sewing and gently pulled at the pouch, testing its endurance. It held fine. It would last until his next visit to the village.

“Mmhh...”

He turned at the sound. The baby stretched and turned her head on the other side. She was about to wake up soon and Shen was certain she would be hungry. He left the room quietly, closed the door and, after grabbing the baby-bottle he made last night, went in search of Nanny and Hop.

* * *

Raindrops began to fall just as Shen returned to the house. He left the barn door open for the goats and moved towards his room.

“AAAAAAAUU!!” the baby yelled from behind the closed door. 

Concerned, Shen quickly opened the door. The room was a mess. The newly made diapers were thrown around along with the cloth pieces he had left when making the diapers. His heavy blanket was dragged down on the floor and, more importantly, the baby was nowhere to be seen.

“Little one?” he asked carefully.

“Auu?” the blanket replied.

Shen slowly lifted the heavy fur.

“DAAAA!” the baby yelled triumphantly as she rushed to headbutt his leg.

He scooped her up and held her at eye height, ignoring her kicking.

“You did all this?”

She tilted her head curiously for a moment, then gave him a big proud smile.

He smiled too.

“I’ll take you with me next time,” he said as he placed her gently on the bed. “But for now, let’s fill that belly.” He poked her stomach.

Immediately she tried to grab his finger, only to forget about it the next second, when she saw him giving her the baby-bottle.

* * *

Back in the barn, Nanny bleated at Hop to get inside. When he did, she pushed the fence door close, jumped over it and went inside as well.  
They sat at the edge of the open barn door, watching the rainfall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, y'all be safe and take extra good care of your elders. Second, wash your hands and all that jazz.  
> On to the chapter notes.
> 
> 1\. Not very satisfied with how this chapter ended up, especially given how long it took me.  
> 2\. I noticed a few things that I do wrong (in my general writing style) and I'll try to minimize them moving forward.  
> 3\. Don't expect regular updates. This is my own healing AU, so I'm only writing it when I need it. And sometimes I'm feeling way too shitty to write.
> 
> Back to IRL stuff for a sec. Physical health is important, everyone is talking about that, and that's great. Don't forget your mental health though, and how this whole craziness will affect it. Take a break from the news for a day, talk about some random dumb stuff with your friends, write a story, re-read you fav fic/ book., keep yourself occupied. Stay healthy physically, but also mentally. It'll be over at some point.
> 
> My best wishes to you.


	4. Akali

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like baby goats.

Patches of bright green grass were scattered along the path to Shen’s house. Yellow and white flowers had bloomed among them, swinging slightly with the cool spring breeze.  
Small birds were singing in the trees and a lone hawk could occasionally be heard in the distance.

Kennen pulled down his hood and closed his eyes as he walked, enjoying the air. Being the only remaining Master of the Kinkou Order, it was rare for him to get breaks like this. Technically, he was supposed to convince Shen to take his father’s place as the Eye of Twilight, but this was his tenth time attempting it. He had no hopes that the scarred man would return.

“BAAAAA!” A goat yelling shook Kennen off his thoughts. The house was right after this slope. He wondered how old Nanny’s kid would be by now. Last time he came by, her pregnancy was barely visible-

A small goat flew off the slope, its head looking behind. A deep purple fabric was coming out of its mouth.

“HOP!” A half-angry, half-amused voice called behind it.

The young goat landed steadily on the path and waited for its pursuer, ready to burst into another sprint. Kennen took a closer look at the kid. White with small brown patches, it was definitely Nanny’s kid. And the purple fabric in its mouth... Shen’s shirt?

Finally, the man himself leapt off the slope. Kennen almost didn’t recognize him.  
He was shirtless but most of his body was covered by a brown baby pouch. In the pouch, a human baby was laughing with its hands wide open. Shen’s eyes shone warm white, an illumination Kennen had never seen before. And he was smiling. Not his usual slight raise of his lips, but a full, wide smile.

Hop jumped to the left through the trees the moment Shen appeared. Shen landed at the spot the goat was a moment ago and ran after it.  
For a second, Kennen thought he hadn’t noticed him.

“Kennen, hey, want to give me a hand with this one?”

It took Kennen some time to shook off the sock of Shen’s change. Then time slowed for him. The pebbles he kicked as he burst into a casual, for him, sprint were still falling as he passed Shen. When the first pebble touched the ground again, he had taken the fabric of Hop’s mouth. The kid didn’t even notice him and continued running and jumping away happily.

When Shen reached him, the light in his eyes had turned back to the neutral white he always had. Still, they shone brighter than usual.

A few minutes later, Nanny passed by them as they walked back to the house. She refused a pet from Kennen, annoyed that she had to get her son in order after Shen hyped him up.  
They walked in silence for a bit. Shen was walking steadily towards the house, the remains of an old shirt in his hand. Kennen and the baby in Shen’s pouch were both eyeing each other curiously. Finally, Kennen cracked.

“Shen?”

“Yes?”

“Why do you have a baby?”

“I don’t have the faintest idea.”

“...”

“I’ll tell you the whole story, maybe you can figure it out.” They reached the fence that surrounded the house. “But let me grab something for us to eat.”

* * *

They sat by the stream near the house. A few days before, Shen had found some wild strawberries that he now offered to Kennen.   
Shen took one himself, washed it on the stream and slowly crushed it in his palm. He offered the goo to the baby he had firmly trapped between his crossed legs. Still enamoured with the fluffy Yordle, she pushed his hand away. Then she noticed the sweet smell, pulled it back and gave it a taste.  
Her mouth turned into a perfect O and she turned to look at Shen.

“Mmmm-a! Da!” she said, then giggled. Smiling, Shen took another strawberry in his hand as she dived back into the goo on his other one.

“So. Why do you have a baby?” Kennen asked again as he finished his strawberry.

“I found her at my doorstep about a month ago...”

* * *

Kennen listened carefully, nibbling on the strawberry leaves. But more than listening, he observed. As Shen talked, his eyes lit up, his voice took warmer tones and he began absentmindedly petting the baby’s head.  
After eating the goo from three strawberries, the baby forgot her interest in Kennen and leaned on Shen’s thigh, falling asleep.

Shen was gushing about how yesterday the baby had managed to stand on her legs, using Nanny’s leg to steady herself, when Kennen interrupted.

“Have you named her yet?”

“...surprised that Nanny let her- Hm?”

“The baby. Does she have a name?”

“No, I usually call her ‘little one’,” Shen answered puzzled.

“Fitting, but that’s not a name.” Kennen waved his hand dismissively. “She needs a proper one.”

“Well, I don’t-”

“How about Akari?” Kennen suggested. “ _Light._ ”

“Why light?”

“Because she brought a light to you that I haven’t seen since Ze- Before! Since before.” Kennen cursed himself quietly.

“Ah.” Shen’s face darkened and his hand went to touch the scars on his back.  
They stayed silent for some minutes, Kennen waiting on Shen to act first. Shen’s mind was away, deep into memories of his past.

The darkness in his face was pushed away as quick as it came when the baby woke up.

“Akari, huh?” Shen lifted her up to his eye level. “How do you like it? Akari.”

“A-li...” she answered, half asleep still.

“Li, ri... Akari... Aka-li? Is Akali better?” he asked.

“DA!” she smiled and lifted her hands up.

He brought her closer and hugged her.

“Akali it is then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay okay, listen up, I just learned that "r" sounds are really hard for babies and "l" ones are much easier and it fits so god-damn perfectly with my idea that I literally jumped in the air when I realized it.
> 
> Shen's past will NOT be explored in this fic. Too angsty and dark. Maybe I'll write a "prequel" to this? Dunno, no promises.
> 
> Hope you liked this one, next chapter within a year.   
> :P


	5. Dada

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HAVE REACHED PEAK TITLING LEVELS
> 
> FEAR MY POWEEEER

“You said there was no trace of anyone else when you found her?” Kennen asked.

“Nothing,” Shen replied. “No footsteps, no trace of any magic... It’s like she simply appeared.”

“Hmm...” Kennen looked at the baby in question.

She was currently crawling away from Shen, enamoured by the sound of the stream. She only managed to wet her palms before Shen pulled her away, earning an annoyed “Da!”. She was a perfectly normal-looking human baby. Slightly annoyed that his observation skills seemed to fail him, Kennen decided to run through the facts they had again.

“You didn’t find any footprints? Signs of levitation magic? Any weird smells?”

“No. No magic either.” Shen let a sigh escape him. “Kennen, you know how I see the world. I would have noticed any interference from the spirit realm before anything else.”

“I know, I know.” The Yordle waved his hand dismissively. “The only other possibilities are... very unusual.”

Shen kept looking at him silently as he pulled Akali away from the stream again.

“Mmm... Remind me if you can see the remnants of the Bandle City portals?”

“I can.”

Kennen lifted his arms in the air surrendering.

“Then I don’t know what to think- Wait! Can you see Celestials?”

“Are you joking, Kennen?” Shen asked, a slight smile on his lips.

“Maybe,” Kennen smiled too. The very thought was crazy but he had run out of ideas. “Well, can you? Or, maybe, Ascended?”

“I can’t see Celestials, no.” Shen stopped Akali from going into the stream once more. “Ascended... I’ve seen both parts of the Aspect of Justice. Their magic appears weak, transparent in my eyes. Still, if it was an Aspect, I would have seen some traces of it.”

“So either a Celestial or something else that we don’t know of wanted you to have Akali.” Kennen let his words sit in the air for a while. “But why?”

“I’d like to know as well,” Shen replied, “But since she is here, I’ll just do my best to care for her.”

As if to put his words to the test, Akali bolted towards the stream. Shen caught her once more from the waist and lifted her up.

“Want a bath, little tornado? Is that why you’re running to the water?”

“BA! A-BABA-BU! A-BU! DAAAA! WA-DAA-IIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!” Akali’s protest was interrupted by Shen dipping her little legs to the water.

“See? It’s freezing,” he said as he dried her legs with a small cotton towel.

She sulked and went quiet until he finished, then began crawling around again, this time avoiding the stream.

“She’s a lively one,” Kennen said as they watched her hunt a carpenter bee from flower to flower.

“Yeah...”

Akali tried to stand up to get closer to the bee. Her small feet wobbled, her hands flailed as she tried to gain some balance... And she fell backwards.  
Shen moved faster than he ever had, diving towards her, hands extended to catch her. He barely managed to reach her before her head landed on the ground.  
Her head was a perfect fit in his palm. She laughed at his concerned expression and raised her hands to his face.

“Dada!”

Shen’s throat tightened and his eyes suddenly watered. He turned to Kennen.

“Did she just...”

“She sure did,” Kennen replied with a huge smile.

“I’m a dad?” Shen’s expression was a mix of shock, fear, and joy.

Kennen could not help but burst into laughter.

“It’s been a month since you found her, you dense _-pfft-_ birdbrained- HAAAA!” Kennen fell on his back and began rolling around laughing.

“Oh, come on, it’s not that funny,” Shen said with an uncertain smile.

“Not that funny?!” Kennen did another roll. “Your face! You should have seen _-wheeze-_ your faceee- HAHAAA!”

All the rolling around was getting Kennen closer and closer to the stream until he finally fell in. The sight of his old master laughing in the middle of the stream, looking like a wet cat, finally broke Shen. He dropped next to Akali, laughing like he hadn’t laughed in years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Thank you rito for the [Ionia cinematic](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGPoGtSBhu0). Also thank you for your overcomplicated magic system that allowed me to save at least some mystery as to whom left Akali. But not really.
> 
> 2\. Writing dialogue between two serious monks is a fucking curse and I hate it.
> 
> 3\. Oh, also, since none of the characters will ever learn Akali's exact age, I'll let you know here. She's 12 months old as of this chapter.
> 
> 4\. Also, also, I finally understand why parents say their baby's age with months and weeks. These little things grow by the day.


	6. An Early Spring Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boo!  
> I live.

It was a clear night on the mountain. The grey light of the moon shined through the barn window and reflected at yellow goat eyes. Nanny looked at the stillness of the night for a while. She yawned, licked Hop’s head and fell back asleep, resting her head on her kid’s back.

A few walls south, Akali was sleeping peacefully in a bundle of blankets. From next to her, Shen rustled the coals in the fireplace, sending dozens of sparks flying. He was about to get up to throw more wood on the fire when Kennen cut him off.

“Don’t keep the fire going on my account. I have to go.” The Yordle got up to his feet and stretched his limbs. “I have to be at the Temple by morning,” he answered Shen’s questioning look.

“Alright.” Shen got up himself and they walked out together. At the fence door, Shen stopped and bowed slightly at his old Master. “Today was a good day,” he smiled. 

“Certainly. Meeting Akali was a very nice surprise.” Kennen smiled back. “Oh, you know I have to ask, are you coming back to the Temple or...”

“I’m not.”

“Yes, yes, I didn’t think you would. Although...” Kennen paused. “Now that you have a baby, the Temple could be better for her.”

“No.” Shen’s face tightened.

“Well, you’re always welcome, if you want to,” Kennen took a step back and raised his hands apologetically.

Shen nodded.

“Alright, I’m off. Give the goats a treat from me, okay?”

“I will. Have a safe trip.”

Kennen raised his mask to his nose and gave Shen’s thigh a gentle punch.

“You know where to find me if you ever need anything. Bye kid.”

There was a flash of blue, almost white lighting and Kennen was gone.

* * *

It was a quiet night, with both goats and humans getting a good night's sleep. Nanny and Hop enjoyed a sugar cube each and Akali gulped down a full bottle of Nanny’s milk while Shen walked to the front room to get his own breakfast, a piece of salted meat.

They walked together to the stream, Shen carrying a basket filled with laundry and dirty diapers on one hand, steadying Akali on his shoulder with the other. Hop went on ahead, jumping around like every morning. Nanny followed behind, munching a leaf she had ripped off a young plant.  
When they arrived at the steam, the goats drank water for a bit, then Nanny moved away to find her usual grazing spots. Hop stayed around Shen and Akali for a bit, hoping to lure Shen into playing with him. When he saw Shen sit down and start cleaning clothes, he left to follow his mother.  
Akali crawled around for a bit, then climbed into the, now empty, laundry basket to sleep.

It took Shen about half an hour to finish with the laundry. He hung clothes and diapers on tree branches and picked up the basket with Akali.  
Back at the house, he gently moved her into her pouch. Then, with Akali sleeping on his chest, he walked west of the cabin to a flat patch of land. This was his vegetable garden.  
The area wasn’t too big, about the size of the barn. Some weeds had already begun growing, but most of the garden was barren. He spent most of his morning digging them out, careful to take them out with their roots. Akali woke up halfway through his work and he let her down to play in the soft dirt close to him.

By midday, he had made a small pile of weeds on the side of the garden. Only a small patch remained wild.  
He picked up a hungry Akali and walked to the stream. He kept her occupied by giving her the empty baby bottle to suck as he followed the stream downhill.

After sucking air for a minute, Akali got angry and threw the bottle away, forcing Shen to take a different path to pick it up. Among the angry baby crying and pushing away thorny plants, Shen almost missed a small patch of strawberries. They weren’t as ripe nor as big as the ones he had found yesterday but they were good enough.  
He covered Akali’s eyes with his palm for a second to get her attention.

“Shush, little one.” He slowly kneeled and pointed at the strawberries. “Look there.”

“Aaa?” she tilted her head, confused.

“Here.” He picked one up and held the small berry in his palm. “It’s a strawberry. Like yesterday?”

“A-be-y?”

“Strawberry, yes.” He gave her the berry. It filled her palm. “Here. Want to try and eat it yourself?”

“Da!”

“Alright, let’s wash it at the stream first.” Shen let her hold the berry, picked up a few more and then headed for the stream.

As he walked, Akali decided that chewing was optional and tried to shove the full berry down her throat.

“Mmfffff…” she struggled.

Shen immediately removed the strawberry from her mouth and hands.

“Couldn't you wait a bit?” he asked as they reached the stream.

After putting Akali down, he washed five big strawberries, cut them into small pieces and put them aside, on a log that Akali couldn't reach. He turned to her with one piece on each hand.

“You need to chew,” he mimicked the motion. “Will you do that?”

Protruding his lips, he continued to chew on the air and saying “chew, chew”. When he won her attention away from the food, he gave her one cut strawberry. 

“Chew. Like this.” he put the other one on his mouth and chewed on it slowly, exasperating the motion.

Fascinated, Akali did the same. Her eyes widened at the flavour and before she even swallowed her first bite she was asking for more. Shen fed her the cut strawberries one by one and soon her belly was full.  
She fell asleep in the few minutes it took Shen to get her back to the house. He placed her at his bed next to the pillow and went to get his own dinner.

* * *

The afternoon found Shen in the now clean, garden. He was sitting with Akali next to the pile of weeds. She was crawling all around him, chasing anything that moved. The few times she would catch whatever she was after, be it grass or bug, she would try and eat it. Her attempts always fell short as Shen quickly stopped her, resulting in protest and sulking for a few seconds. Until something else grabbed her attention and the circle began again.  
Shen, when he wasn't occupied with Akali, was tying the weeds together in thick bundles and putting them aside.  
Nanny was sitting on the fresh dirt a few meters away, chewing on something and observing her son. Hop was rolling in the dirt, kicking dust and loose roots in the air.  
It didn't take long for his shenanigans to catch Akali's attention. She grabbed as much dirt as her little palms could hold and tossed it in the air. She watched bright-eyed as the wind took the individual specks of dirt, breaking them off the mass and turning them into a brown cloud that landed on Shen's feet.  
This continued for a few minutes until both kids were tired and hungry. Hop, the older of the two, walked away in search of tasty bushes. Akali, the youngest and less independent one, set course to Shen's side.

“Hungry?” he asked as she closed in.

“Daaa… Uuuu,” she complained.

“In a minute. Let me finish this bundle.”

Akali had no care to let him do that. She didn't stop when she reached him and began climbing on his side.

“Akali… Wait a minute, little one.” he lifted his elbow high, away from her hands that looked for handles.

That failed to deter her and she grabbed on his shirt, using it to climb towards his face. He let her, steading his arm so she would have stable footing. Pretending he wasn’t paying her attention, he held the bundle with his steady arm and wrapped it with the other. Soon he felt her on his shoulder, uncharacteristically quiet. Then…

“DAAAAAAAAAAA!!!” she screamed in his ear, causing him to instinctively lean away.

Akali lost her balance at the sudden movement and fell off his shoulder, head first towards the ground. Only to land in his palms half a second later, looking up at his terrified expression. Unfazed at the fact that she almost cracked her head, she kept complaining.

“Da! Uuuu. UU! UUUU! DA!”

“Food. Yes.” Shen put her down and picked up the recently filled baby bottle from his side. “Don’t ever do that again, please.”

Akali barely noticed him talking, her attention fully dedicated to the baby bottle.

A feeding and a diaper change later, the last light of the sun was retreating, giving the stars their turn to shine. Akali was sleeping peacefully in her pouch and Shen nibbled on his dried meat at the gate as he was waiting for the goats. It didn’t take long for Hop to appear through the woods, trotting towards the barn. He gave a small headbutt on Shen’s leg, received a pat on the head and moved inside. Nanny appeared not much later, chewing on a particularly tasty leaf. In fact, she was so satisfied with her discovery that she gave Shen not one, but two soft headbutts. In turn, she received two head pats.  
When she entered the barn house, Shen followed closing the fence gate first, then the door. The building was covered in darkness since he didn’t lit a fire tonight. Still, he navigated through the dark without any problems, heading straight to bed. He took Akali off the pouch and placed her at the top of the bed, near his only pillow. Still asleep, she grabbed the pillow tight like a little baby monkey. Shen changed into his indoors clothes, simple grey pants and a shirt, and got into the bed carefully, not wanting to wake the baby. Akali did not wake up. However, when she sensed him close she let go of the pillow and clung on his arm.

Shen fell asleep with a dumb smile on his face, determined to not move his arm an inch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was very slice-of-life-y.  
> And I'm not very happy with it. ~~So, and I usually don't ask for this...~~
> 
>  ~~Would you prefer some chapters to be like a daily/ weekly/ monthly account of what happens in Shen's & Akali's (and the goats) lives? Like this one?~~  
>  ~~Or should I just focus on the important events only and avoid the more mundane parts?~~  
>  Decision has been reached. Doing doth depending on what moments I wanna show in their lives.
> 
> Stay safe.


	7. The Village

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Consistent pacing? What's that?

Akali was swinging back and forth in her pouch, bonking Shen in the chest at every swing. It was bearable at first, then the pain began stacking up.

“Hey, calm down,” he immobilised her head with his palm.

She completely ignored his pleas for quiet as she had done for the last five months she was with him.

“Dada! Down!” she demanded, her head never stopping bouncing back and forth.

“Soon, we're almost there. Be patient.”

Akali didn't want to be patient, she wanted to run. And the lack of ground at her feet did not discourage her from doing so. Her first kick got him on the thigh and Shen was quick to lift her higher, saving himself from the worse. Still, her second kick got him in the sternum, making him wince at the unexpected pain.

“Fine. Here you go,” he conceded.

With Akali still in it, he took off the pouch and lowered it just enough for her legs to touch the ground. Akali immediately tried to run off, only to be held back by Shen's pouch turned body-leash. Still, she pulled like a dog that hasn't gone for a walk in a while, trying to escape his hold. Being the size of his calf, her attempts ended up falling.  
The natural next step to earn her freedom was to yell. And yell she did.

“DAAAADA!!! GOOO! ME GOOOO!! LET ME GOOOOO!!!!” She accompanied her protests with more pulling and frantic flailing of her arms. 

She was making such a scene that Shen almost didn’t notice the figure that was walking towards them. They were covered completely under a deep blue robe that swayed ever so gently on the wind. The person’s face was hidden behind a low hood, creating an appearance that should have been menacing. But that wasn’t the case. Instead of doom and gloom, the figure oozed with calmness and peace.  
So much so, that when Akali took notice, she stopped throwing a tantrum and looked at the gentle changes of the shadows in the figure’s robe. Shen stopped as well, finding himself losing his own controlled calmness to a deeper, soothing feeling, much like how his father would describe true inner peace.  
The figure walked by them slowly, nodding at Shen and cheerfully waving a hand hidden behind a large sleeve at Akali. Time felt like it was moving at a rocks speed and man and child were drowned in that soothing feeling.  
Then, after what felt like a century or a second, the figure passed them. They felt a summer night breeze hit their backs, swirling around their bodies, and when they turned to look at the hooded figure, it was gone. As if it never existed, as if both father and daughter dreamed the same dream.

“Dada?” Akali turned to Shen, raising her hands for him to lift her.

“Yeah?” His voice was hoarse and he cleared his throat as he lifted Akali up.

“What was zat?”

“That,” Shen exasperated his lips’ movement during the ‘th’, “I don’t know.”

He patted her head reassuringly and began walking again. The village was just over the next hilltop. Akali clung on his shirt for a while, looking over his shoulder at the path behind them. After a whole five minutes of the hooded figure not appearing, she got bored and demanded to run on the path again. And, since Shen had noticed the path starting to climb up the last hill, he let her.  
Akali attacked the roots and rocks on the path with zeal, trying to get over them and run ahead of Shen. Much to her dismay, where Shen simply took a step over them, she had to climb rocks as big as her, sometimes bigger, and roots that had risen from the ground and were sitting just at her chest height as if to aggravate her more.  
She never gave up, but when Shen saw her fall for the tenth time trying to scale the same rock, he picked her up for the final steps up the hill.

Perched at his shoulders, she saw the village first as they reached the top.

Among the sea of pine trees, a small lake had found its place in between the hills. At its southern shores, a pier was surrounded by two dozens buildings, all at about the same size. The immediate area around the buildings was devoid of trees, the hill slope terraformed in layers, forming multiple small farms. Two boats with three to four people inside them were approaching the pier to be welcomed by more humans. Nets and buckets exchanged hands and the people tied the boats in the pier before retreating in multiple buildings.

* * *

The sun was fighting with a cloud, struggling to push his light past it and painting it in deep orange hues. The evening twilight was becoming more and more dominant as they reached the outskirts of the village.  
Akali made a disgusted face as the dead fish smell reached them, just before they walked by the farms. Mosquitoes, dragonflies and swarms of caddisflies flew all around them and some ducks walked along with the duo, heading to spend the night in their coops.  
The village dogs sniffed them out first and the ensuing howling quickly alarmed the villagers. More than half of the buildings opened their doors and about a dozen men and women came to welcome Shen. “Master healer” they called him, the strange man that came by occasionally to heal their sick and weak. In turn, the village provided him with clothing or seeds for his garden.

As Shen expected, most of them forgot to even greet him, instead they gushed about small Akali, bombarding him with questions. Some, mostly the middle-aged men, tried to be polite at first, greeting him as usual, but soon their curiosity took over and they joined the rest.

“Who is this?”

“Where’d you come from, little lady?”

“What’s her name?”

“We didn’t know you had a family!”

These and more questions barraged Shen as they walked through the village. Some windows opened and curious faces watched from inside.  
Shen tried to answer the questions he had answers for, while Akali tried to hide her face inside Shen’s short hair, overwhelmed by the small crowd.

“Aw, she’s shy… It’s okay, baby. Hey, give them some space, people!” An elderly woman started to disperse the crowd. Her name was Aina and she occasionally acted as chief for the village. “Come by the house with your requests later, alright?”

Shen gave Akali a few head pats, calming her down a bit, as they watched Aina send the villagers to their homes. Akali quickly forgot about the crowd and watched the woman’s long white braid tangle as they followed her to her home.  
There, they were greeted by the soft-spoken husband of the woman, Odovacar, and his apologies for not greeting them outside but the fish were almost ready and he didn’t want them to burn and oh my god, is that a baby?!  
Akali quickly warmed up to the white-bearded grandpa and soon they were playing tug of war with a thin rope as Aina and Shen talked near the window. After the usual “how are you” and “how’s the village fairing” the conversation naturally drifted to the baby.

“So, what’s her name?”

“Akali.”

Aina looked at her and back to Shen.

“It fits her. And she’s... how old?” she asked.

“I hoped you could help me determine that,” Shen smiled. “See, she’s not my blood. I found her outside my door one night about five months ago.”

“Outside your… We don’t even know where you live,” Aina said in bewilderment. “Who would bring her to you?”

“I don’t know. All I know is that I’m taking care of her now.”

A loud thud interrupted them. Odovacar had fallen to the ground.

“Ooooh, noooo! You’re too strong, mighty Akali! You win!” He said dramatically, then rolled on his back and played dead. The victorious baby fell on her butt laughing at the man’s shenanigans.

“Odo? What are you doing?” Aina asked, barely holding her own laughter back.

Odovacar opened one eye and looked at his wife and the healer from the floor.

“I was defeated by Akali in the great battle of Tug O’ War. She pulled me down with the might of a mother bear!” He opened another eye to wink at his wife and then kept playing dead.

She waved her hand dismissively.

“Man-child,” Aina said lovingly and turned back to a chuckling Shen. “If you need any help with her, you know you are free to ask.”

“Spirits, yes,” he returned to his usual reserved expression. “My only knowledge of babies is from goats. And their mother does most of the work. With Akali I’m on my own.”

“Well, you’re in luck. I’ve raised more than a few kids in my time. Why don’t you tell me what you know about babies and I’ll fill in any gaps.”

They talked through the evening, often interrupted by villagers in need of Shen’s advice or healing skills. Odovacar spent his time playing with Akali and they were both exhausted by dinner time. Shen and Akali joined the elderly family at their table, the fresh fish a welcome change from the fruits and vegetables of the mountain home. Akali had warm milk with honey instead of fish and was soon sleeping on Shen’s lap.

The adults talked deep into the night, the light from their home the only remaining illumination in the dark cool night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluff is the best genre, change my mind.
> 
> You can't.


	8. Rabbit Soup

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To a better 2021.

A young girl’s laughter echoed through the old trees. Small chunks of snow fell from the treetops, falling silently and crashing violently to the ground. Most of the animals that used to hibernate in the area had already moved down the lower parts of the hill, trying to escape the kid’s yelling. Only two big animals stayed in the area now. A goat named Nanny and her almost adult kid, Hop. They were snuggling in their barn, partly to fight the cold, but mostly trying to ignore the high pitched yelling coming from outside.

“Uncle Kennen! Uncle Kennen! Wait!”

A bundle of furs was running around the house, with a small hole to allow its wearer to see. Akali’s face was barely visible, only her eyes and rosy cheeks escaped the furs. Of course, that didn’t slow her down in the slightest.  
A few meters ahead of her, Kennen was waiting. He was wearing his usual thin purple clothing. But his own fur had grown into its winter coat, warming him up and making him look even fluffier. 

“I’m waiting,” he said with a smile. “All I do is wait. You’re slow Akali,” he teased her.

“Bad uncle Kennen!” Akali scolded him and picked up her pace.

“Me bad?!” He raised his hand to his heart and took a shocked expression. “You wound me, my dear baby... snail.”

He fell on his back in the snow, holding his, as he claimed, wounded heart. Akali immediately realized her chance and reached to grab him. The hairs in the furs she was wearing barely managed to touch his own fur before he disappeared, leaving behind a small puddle of melted snow and a frustrated child.  
He was now leaning on a tree a few meters away, his taunting smile never going away.

“Bad! Sit still, sit still!” The two-year-old yelled.

“I’m not moving at all! See?” He pointed at his feet. “Not moving. Come and catch me.”

Akali fell on her butt.

“No.”

“No? Do you give up?” He still kept his smug smile but leaned closer to see if she was actually upset.

“No,” she crossed her arms.

“So you still want to catch me?”

“Yes.”

“Then come catch me.”

“No.”

Kennen sat down himself. Maybe he pushed her a bit too much.

“Well, you can’t catch me if you just sit there.”

Akali didn’t answer. Instead, she picked up some snow and started playing with it, throwing it in the air, at the house to her left, making snowballs…

They stayed like this for a while until Shen appeared from the corner. A big bear coat was hanging loosely off his shoulders and a fur hat made of squirrel pelts covered his head.

“Food’s ready.”

“What did you make today?” Kennen asked.

“Rabbit soup.”

“Blieh!” Akali wasted no time to show her disapproval. “Always rabbit...” She pouted.

“It’s winter, sweety,” he explained. “We don't have many options.”

“Mmff...” She pouted.

Shen sat next to her.

“I’m also tired of rabbit soup. But it’s nice and warm and I added a secret ingredient from Uncle Kennen’s home.”

“What’s ingre-dent?”

“An ingredient can be anything we use to make a meal. For the soup, the main ingredient is rabbit meat. But I also put in some dried thyme. The rabbit and the thyme are both ingredients of the soup.”

“Is snow ingre-dident? You put snow in.”

“Hmm,” he paused. “I don’t know. Snow turns to water and we use water for everything we eat...” He rubbed the back of his neck, unsure. “What’d you think, Kennen?”

“Well… I think… Mmm...” The rebound of the question caught Kennen off guard. He wiggled his nose left and right as he thought. “Snow is an ingredient. But water is not.”

“Why?” This time it was Shen asking.

“You cook snow to make water, like you cook raw meat into food.”

“Ooo...We eat snow-rabbit-tyme soup!” Akali realized.

“Snow-rabbit-thyme,” Shen corrected her pronunciation, “and Kennen’s secret ingredient. Now, are we going back in to eat or you two enjoy freezing your butts in the snow?”

Akali giggled and got up.

“Let’s eat! Let’s eat!”

* * *

The fireplace had been consuming wood since early in the morning and the room was dry and warm. Furs of various sizes were covering the floor, allowing the people of the house to walk around barefooted. The eerie silence that the snow had brought made the house feel even more isolated than normal. As if the world had seized to exist and all that remained were an ancient Yordle, a middle-aged man and a baby girl. Quiet and peaceful, it was all Shen needed in his life.

Well, quiet maybe wasn’t the right word, he thought as Akali eagerly bit the spoon he was feeding her with, causing half of the soup in it to fall on his legs. He didn’t mind, as he was wearing old, barely holding together trousers that he was keeping around only for when feeding Akali.  
The baby swallowed and her eyes widened. Without a word, she grabbed his hand to bring the spoon back to her mouth.

“Wait, wait! It’s empty.” Shen laughed and freed the spoon of her jaws. “So, you like this new rabbit soup?”

“MMMMmmmMMM!” She replied, eyes focused on the returning spoon.

Kennen laughter joined Shen’s.

“I still don’t understand why you didn’t plant potatoes all this time. It’s the perfect crop for the area.”

“Me neither.” Shen pried the spoon off Akali once again. “I was focused on building the house at first, then the barn, maintaining them...” The spoon lost itself inside Akali’s mouth. “Those are not valid excuses though. I don’t know.”

“Well, now you have a few to plant in spring. I'll bring more next time.” Kennen took a bite off his own, separately boiled potatoes.

“Thank you. Hey, Akali?”

“Mmm?” She was still focused on the soup.

“Do you want to thank uncle Kennen for the potatoes? They were the secret ingredient.”

“Thank you, uncle Kennen.”

“You are very welcome,” he replied with a big furry smile.

* * *

They spent the afternoon inside, moving from room to room at Akali’s whims. Kennen gave news to Shen about the Order and what was left of Ionia. Akali’s activities varied from trying to get into a headbutting contest with Hop (Shen was quick to stop her) to lying on top of Nanny and tying the poor goat’s hair in flimsy knots.

When the sun dove behind the mountain peaks, darkening the barn, they moved back to the main room by the fire. There, Shen used a white bone comp to straighten Akali’s wild hair. The combination of the soft brushing and the heat quickly led her asleep.

Seeing Shen and Akali next to him, Kennen’s mind travelled back some decades ago. Back to the last Master of the Order.   
Kusho was a quiet man that didn’t feel much. From child to elder, Kusho laughed very little. He angered rarely and never truly loved. His union with Shen’s mother was a means to an end to him, her passing nothing but the wind’s howl in the window. 

Kennen remembered a familiar scene. Like today, it was midwinter. Like today, a fire burned by them. Like today, a father was holding his sleeping child in his lap.  
But unlike today, there wasn’t the feeling of real warmth in the air. Only a forced display of care and love. Kusho wasn’t a bad man, but he had been a bad father.  
The monks had to step up and care for Shen, although that wasn’t unusual in the Order.   
Kennen had worked the closest with Shen and another orphan that was left at the temple doorsteps. He felt like a father to these two and while none of them achieved what was expected of them, Kennen was beaming with pride that at least one of them was finally happy.

“What?” Shen broke the silence.

“Hmm?”

“You are staring and smiling.”

“Usually, the kids I raise meet my expectations or rise above them,” Kennen said, “Rarely, they find happiness.”

Shen didn’t answer, only returned the smile.

“Well, I have to go if I want to reach the Temple by midnight,” Kennen jumped on his feet. “No, don’t get up,” he continued as he pulled up his mask.

Shen stopped in the middle of raising Akali off of him.

“Tell Akali that I love her very much and good luck catching me next time.”

“Of course. Give my good wishes to the monks and their leaders.”

“You know, saying Dartha’s name won’t make her materialize here,” Kennen teased him.

“Oh, leave me be. Old habits die hard,” Shen laughed.

Dartha or Karma, as she was now known as, had been one of the last teachers that Shen listened to. Now, she was the woman that was stuck leading the Kinku in his place, instead of focusing on her own pursuit of enlightenment. And also the very reincarnation of the Spirit of Ionia. All and all, not a woman he would like to confront again.

Kennen opened the door, letting the cold air enter the warm room. Akali shivered and hid further below Shen’s jacket. He used his hands to shield her.

“You know, Irelia might have heard somewhere that you have a child,” Kennen spoke. “She will want you two to visit someday.”

“No. I’m not coming back, Kennen.” Shen’s voice was tired.

“I had to ask. I think she would love Akali, maybe think about it? Even if it’s just for a simple visit.”

Kennen stretched and got out.

“Anyway, I’m off.”

“Have a safe journey.”

“I will. See you two sometime next spring.”

With that, Kennen closed the door. The cold remained in the air for a while, before it succumbed to the heat.

Akali was still asleep, so Shen straightened his back, placed his hands on his knees and closed his eyes.   
Meditation was something he had stopped practising when he left the Kinkou, but not by choice. Nightmares made of dark and blood-red shadows used to haunt him every time he closed his eyes.   
But that had changed with Akali. His mind was more at ease, the past had faded and the memories didn’t hold him as tight anymore.

So, he now meditated in peace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the hiatus, the second half of 2020 has been extra hard to live in.
> 
> Anyway, past all that.  
> A happy new year to all of you and let's hope things will get better.  
> I'll try to write more in 2021 and update more often.
> 
> Stay safe, be happy.


End file.
